No repair is automatically mandatory after a home inspection. The report itself is a condition assessment, not a work order, and the seller is free to refuse any request it generates. Mandatory repairs after a home inspection come from three places outside the report: what the purchase agreement requires, what state or local law requires before a legal transfer, and what the buyer’s mortgage lender requires before funding the loan. Everything else is a negotiation.
What the Purchase Agreement Actually Requires
The contract, not the inspection, defines who owes what. Most residential purchase agreements include an inspection contingency: a window, typically 7 to 10 days after offer acceptance (sometimes as short as 3 days, sometimes longer depending on the state), during which the buyer can inspect the property and decide how to proceed.
The contingency gives the buyer leverage, not the seller an obligation. Within that window, the buyer can request repairs, ask for a price reduction, or cancel the deal and recover the earnest money deposit. The precise contract language matters. Some clauses let the buyer renegotiate over any defect; others limit requests to major structural or system problems.
An “as-is” listing is weaker than it sounds. The seller is signaling an unwillingness to make repairs, but the buyer’s inspection contingency still lets them walk away if the findings are serious. And in nearly every state, “as-is” does not relieve the seller of the duty to disclose known defects. It just means the seller won’t fix them voluntarily.
Repairs State and Local Law Require Before Closing
Some fixes aren’t negotiable because the law conditions the sale on them. These are baseline safety requirements, and the closing agent or title company may need to confirm compliance before the transaction can fund.
The most common example is smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Multiple states require sellers to install working detectors on every level of the home before closing. Several states also require a certificate of compliance covering smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms, and sometimes portable fire extinguishers before ownership transfers. Other jurisdictional requirements include testing private well water for potability and, in earthquake-prone regions, securing water heaters with seismic straps.
A seller who ignores these items can stall or kill the closing. Addressing them early, before the inspection flags them, is usually cheaper than scrambling at the end.
Repairs the Buyer’s Lender Requires
This is where “mandatory” is literal. Government-backed loans will not fund unless the property meets specific safety and habitability standards, regardless of what the buyer and seller negotiated. If the appraiser flags a problem, it has to be resolved before the loan closes, or handled through an approved escrow arrangement.
FHA Loans
The Federal Housing Administration requires properties to meet its Minimum Property Standards, and an FHA-approved appraiser evaluates the home against them. Items that commonly trigger required repairs:
- Peeling or chipping paint in pre-1978 homes. Federal law treats deteriorating paint in older homes as a potential lead hazard, and FHA requires it to be stabilized using lead-safe work practices before the loan can be endorsed. The property cannot be appraised “as-is” when defective paint is present.
- Roof deficiencies. The roof covering must prevent moisture entry and provide reasonable future utility; if the appraiser determines it won’t, repair or replacement becomes a loan condition.
- Non-functional essential systems. Plumbing, electrical, and heating must all be safe and operational.
- Structural problems. Foundation cracks, water damage, and anything affecting structural soundness must be resolved.
When required repairs can’t be finished before closing, the lender can set up a repair escrow. The mortgage amount increases to cover the cost plus a 10 percent contingency, and the borrower has 45 days after closing to complete the work. The original appraiser then re-inspects and confirms FHA standards are met before escrow funds are released.
VA Loans
VA loans impose their own Minimum Property Requirements. A VA appraiser checks that the home is structurally sound, has adequate living and sleeping space, and that mechanical systems are safe to operate with “reasonable future utility, durability and economy.” The roof must prevent moisture entry, crawl spaces must be clear of debris and properly vented, and the property must have safe drinking water, sanitary facilities, and adequate heating.
USDA Loans
USDA Rural Development loans use similar logic. The property must be structurally sound, functionally adequate, and in good repair, with safe electrical, heating, plumbing, water, and wastewater systems. Chipping lead-based paint must be addressed, and the appraiser or inspector can require any repair involving a health or safety issue or one that threatens the property’s continued marketability.
Across all three loan types, the lender withholds funds until the work is done. Who pays is negotiable; whether the work happens is not.
The Federal Lead Paint Rule for Pre-1978 Homes
One federal requirement applies to every sale of a home built before 1978, regardless of loan type. Under the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act, sellers must disclose any known lead-based paint or lead hazards, provide any existing lead inspection reports, and give the buyer at least 10 days to conduct their own lead inspection before the purchase becomes binding. The 10-day window can be adjusted by mutual agreement, but the seller cannot eliminate it unilaterally.
What a Refused Repair Still Costs the Seller
A seller who declines repairs doesn’t make the defect disappear. The inspection has already told the seller the problem exists, and in most states that knowledge triggers a disclosure duty. The vast majority of states require sellers to disclose known material defects to any potential buyer: anything that affects value or poses a health or safety risk, including structural damage, roof leaks, electrical hazards, mold, and environmental contamination.
Even the handful of states that still follow a “buyer beware” approach require disclosure of known latent hazards that affect health or safety. A seller who refuses to fix a cracked foundation this week will likely have to disclose it to the next buyer next week. Concealment opens the door to fraud, misrepresentation, and breach of contract claims after closing, with remedies that can include repair costs or rescission of the sale.
Negotiating the Rest
Everything outside those three mandatory categories is open to negotiation. Sellers can agree to make requested repairs, refuse them, or propose something in between. One common alternative is a seller credit at closing: the seller reduces the buyer’s closing costs by an agreed amount, and the buyer handles the work after taking possession, with contractors of their own choosing. That avoids a last-minute cheap fix by whoever the seller could book first.
Seller credits are capped by the lender. On FHA and USDA loans, the seller’s total contribution toward closing costs and credits can’t exceed 6 percent of the sale price. VA loans cap it at 4 percent. Conventional loans typically fall between 3 and 9 percent depending on the buyer’s down payment. When the repair bill exceeds those limits, a credit alone may not close the gap.
When Buyer and Seller Can’t Agree
If negotiations stall, the inspection contingency controls. The buyer’s cleanest option is to exercise the contingency within the deadline, terminate the contract, and recover the earnest money in full. Miss the deadline and that right can be forfeited, so the calendar matters.
The alternative is to waive the repair requests and buy the home in its current condition. That shifts every uncovered defect onto the buyer. In competitive markets, some buyers accept that trade when location or price makes it worth it. A buyer who waived the inspection contingency entirely before making the offer has fewer options still: no contractual right to renegotiate or walk away based on inspection findings, and earnest money potentially at risk.